Ronnie Bryant, president and chief operating officer of the Pittsburgh Regional Alliance, is leaving his post to head a similar, but larger, Charlotte, N.C., economic development group that works with 16 counties straddling two states.

John Beale, Post-Gazette Ronnie Bryant Click photo for larger image.

The Charlotte Regional Partnership yesterday tapped Bryant as its next president and chief executive officer, taking the economic development professional and one of the region's highest-profile black executives from one former US Airways hub with seven Fortune 500 companies to an existing US Airways hub that claims nine firms on the Fortune 500.

For Bryant, the shift to a warmer climate means a promotion, and a likely pay raise, as he moves to the top spot at the economic development agency. For the organization he leaves behind, this will be a moment to evaluate its priorities and determine where to go from here.

"We want to make sure we're thoughtful and we do a full assessment of what our needs are now," said F. Michael Langley, chief executive officer of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development and the PRA. Langley will handle the day-to-day duties of the job and expects to know within a few weeks how the organization will handle the vacancy.

Bryant arrived in Pittsburgh four years ago at a time when the nonprofit Pittsburgh Regional Alliance was facing criticism that it was too Pittsburgh-centric and did not have strong ties to the outlying counties that hoped to benefit from a regional focus.

Neither the region nor the PRA has seen smooth sailing in the years since. During Bryant's tenure, challenges have included the post-9/11 economic slowdown to the ever-shrinking US Airways work force and a city short on funds.

The Pittsburgh Regional Alliance was also going through change. In 2003, it joined the Greater Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce and the Pennsylvania Economic League of Southwestern Pennsylvania under the umbrella of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development, a move meant to better focus resources and coordinate efforts.

Though some note that there have been few big, headline-grabbing economic development wins during Bryant's tenure, he did receive praise yesterday for working hard to reach out to the community. "I think Ronnie has been very active in bringing the counties to the table," said Armstrong County Commissioner Patricia Kirkpatrick, who represents her county at the PRA.

Armstrong officials had been upset in the past when a major Siemens Westinghouse fuel cell plant that appeared close to heading there was shifted to Allegheny County at the last minute. In the end, Siemens decided not to use the new plant.

Bryant declined to claim particular projects as part of his legacy but said there are now 100 active, qualified deals in the development pipeline, which he said has become much more robust in recent years.

He believes the 10-county organization is much more cohesive. "We really increased the degree of collaboration and respect," he said.

Bryant is credited for taking a lead role on a regional public-private partnership set up to help maintain competitive air service at Pittsburgh International Airport despite the US Airways cutbacks.

As he exits, Bryant believes it is a good time for the PRA and the Allegheny Conference to take a look their roles in regional development. "There needs to be a broad discussion about how the organization needs to proceed in the future,'' he said.

He said he was not looking to leave Pittsburgh, though his position as vice chairman of the executive committee of the International Economic Development Council gave him numerous contacts and he regularly received queries. The Charlotte search team, which contacted him in May, offered the first one that really struck a chord.

"To be the CEO and run his own ship, I think he's always wanted to do that," said Mark Kurtzrock, president of Downtown ad agency Dymun + Co. and former interim president of the Pittsburgh Technology Council, which fosters and supports growth in the region's tech industry.

The region's business climate, particularly its tax issues, may have created some frustrations for Bryant, said Doris Carson Williams, head of the African-American Chamber of Commerce of Southwest Pennsylvania. "I hate to see him go. I thought he was a welcome addition here."

At the PRA, Bryant earns around $180,000, said Langley. The Carolina organization did not say how much he will earn but his predecessor, who retired this spring, was reported by Charlotte newspapers to be collecting $301,879 in 2002.

Charlotte may look like a dramatically different market than Pittsburgh but some of the issues are familiar.

Although major employers in the urban core include two of the nation's biggest banks, Bank of America and Wachovia, as well as other service companies, the surrounding counties are more rural and heavily dependent on manufacturing, said Angie Lawry, vice president of community relations for the Charlotte Regional Partnership.

There have been a number of plant closings, particularly in the textile industry, and the tobacco growers face plenty of economic development issues.

Bryant will arrive at a moment when the partnership, which spent millions on a marketing effort to sell the Charlotte USA brand as a place that's great for work and play, is focused on getting back to the basics of trolling trade shows and networking to build job growth. The new CEO will be expected to help complete a $7 million fund-raising drive that began in the spring and is a little over halfway to its goal.

Bryant will also be expected to help ease the sometimes contentious relationships between those 16 counties. Nobody recruits from anyone else's territory but sometimes companies decide to move anyway, stirring up tensions.

"We just have to work very hard at making sure our counties understand what the gentlemen's rules are," said Lawry.